against a\u00a0natural backdrop (a\u00a0grove and a\u00a0\ufb02owery meadow), similar to\u00a0several other images preserved in medieval churches in Ma\u0142opolska.
This is a rare depiction of Madonna in a symbolic grove garden \u2013 hortus conclusus or enclosed garden, which symbolises the Virgin\u2019s purity and which was present in European painting from the 15th to the 16th century. It is derived from earlier representations of Madonna in a garden or a \ufb02owery bower, which gained popularity in the age of German and Czech Gothic. The Virgin with a crown on her head, wearing a cloak that features a golden twig design with oak leaves, holding the clothed Child in her right arm (rare in the iconography), is delineated with eighteen sunrays in the background, standing on a crescent moon. The painted background in this image of the Queen of Heaven consists of a dense clump of trees, their species nearly impossible to identify and their crowns speckled with \ufb01ery \ufb02ames. A splendid meadow rendered with a miniaturist\u2019s precision stretches under Mary\u2019s feet, abundant with a variety of plant species like a colourful carpet. The composition is \ufb02anked in the corners by two \ufb01gures of angels with banderols.
Full of\u00a0beauty and lyricism, the\u00a0image carries a\u00a0lot of\u00a0symbolic content. Re\ufb02ecting a\u00a0medieval tradition, it\u00a0shows the\u00a0Madonna\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Apocalypse on\u00a0the\u00a0moon but can also be interpreted as St.\u00a0Mary\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Assumption (Santa Maria\u00a0Assunta). Not insigni\ufb01cant are also the\u00a0elements of\u00a0nature showed in\u00a0the\u00a0picture. The\u00a0\ufb02ames on\u00a0the\u00a0tree crowns have an\u00a0interesting emblematic meaning: they refer to\u00a0the\u00a0lasting of\u00a0the\u00a0indestructible Church. Certain references to\u00a0religious feasts can be tracked down in\u00a0the\u00a0image, such as the\u00a0Visitation (the\u00a02nd day of\u00a0July), formerly known and celebrated locally as the\u00a0feast of\u00a0the\u00a0Blessed Virgin of\u00a0the\u00a0Berries.
The\u00a0image, which has long been considered miraculous, is also rich in\u00a0symbolic references derived from the\u00a0\ufb02owers, fruits and herbs showed on\u00a0the\u00a0panel, some of\u00a0them medicinal, others directly associated with Mary\u2019s virtues. As attributes of\u00a0the\u00a0Holy Virgin, they form a\u00a0visual litany.
The\u00a0making of\u00a0the\u00a0triptych is linkable to\u00a015th-century or later owners of\u00a0the\u00a0village, subsequently referred to\u00a0as the\u00a0Pacz\u00f3\u0142towskis (holders of\u00a0the\u00a0Top\u00f3r coat of\u00a0arms). Executed in\u00a0Krakow, the\u00a0painting might have been founded by\u00a0Jan Pacz\u00f3\u0142towski, the\u00a0feudal lord of\u00a0the\u00a0lands at the\u00a0time. The\u00a0image of\u00a0Mary with Child has, since its creation, been entwined in\u00a0the\u00a0history of\u00a0the\u00a0church and of\u00a0the\u00a0village. Renovated in\u00a01943 and \ufb01nally crowned in\u00a0May 2001, it\u00a0is a\u00a0cult representation, surrounded by\u00a0a\u00a0wonder-working aura. It\u00a0is doubtless among Ma\u0142opolska\u2019s top images of\u00a0Madonna in\u00a0a\u00a0grove.
<\/p>\n\n\n
![\"Koronowana](\"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/madonna-fotogaleria-900_original-1.jpg\")
![\"Trzy](\"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/paczoltowice-foto-3_original-1.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Galeria](\"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/paczoltowice-foto-2_original-1.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n![\"M\u0119\u017cczyzna](\"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/paczoltowice-foto-1_original-1.jpg\")
Located in\u00a0the\u00a0Krak\u00f3w-Cz\u0119stochowa Upland (also known as the\u00a0Polish Jura), a\u00a0small wooden church of\u00a0the\u00a0Visitation of\u00a0Madonna in\u00a0Pacz\u00f3\u0142towice is home to\u00a0one of\u00a0the\u00a0\ufb01nest images of\u00a0Mary in\u00a0the\u00a0local history of\u00a0Gothic panel painting in\u00a0the\u00a0region of\u00a0Ma\u0142opolska (Lesser Poland). Originally, the\u00a0image of\u00a0Madonna with Child in\u00a0the\u00a0central altarpiece and the\u00a0two lateral wings featuring the\u00a0\ufb01gures of\u00a0Saint Barbara and Catherine were parts of\u00a0a\u00a0triptych. The\u00a0middle image of\u00a0the\u00a0Virgin Mary of\u00a0Immaculate Conception, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":28526,"template":"","wystawy_categories":[],"class_list":["post-28472","wystawy","type-wystawy","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wystawy\/28472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wystawy"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/wystawy"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wystawy\/28472\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28526"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"wystawy_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mnk.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wystawy_categories?post=28472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}